KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 9): A former executive director of Ire-Tex Corp Bhd who suggested the company's former substantial shareholder Datuk Larry Tey Por Yee had threatened two independent directors to resign from the board, has apologised for his remarks.

Tey filed a defamation lawsuit against Felix Chin Wui Choong last year following remarks Chin made in an e-mail to update the company's heads of department on the outcome of a board meeting held on March 13, 2017. Chin was still an executive director of the company then.

In the e-mail sighted by The Edge Financial Daily today, Chin wrote that the board meeting had "ended quite unfortunate with the resignation of two independent directors whose well-being were threatened".

Chin also alleged that he was the last executive director on Ire-Tex's board threatened by Tey to quit.

"I have requested from the board to provide me with security protection for the time-being to investigate this matter with (a) police report (lodged) and (have) engaged (a) solicitor to claim back RM16 million for the company," he wrote.

Chin added in the e-mail that the RM16 million was part of the RM35.25 million raised through an irredeemable convertible unsecured loan stock (ICULS) exercise back in mid-June 2014.

While the entire proceeds from the ICULS was meant for working capital, Chin said RM16 million were paid out in advance to a RM2 company called Future Rank Sdn Bhd, citing purchasing machinery as a reason.

"To date, the machines from Sanjung AMS Sdn Bhd remain non-operative and lying idle in the Kulim factory. As purportedly informed by Eric Tan from Sanjung that the machines probably worth about RM2 million which is a far cry from RM16 million," he added.

At the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court today, Judge Roszianavati Ahmad did not allow unrelated parties to attend the court session considering both plaintiff (Tey) and defendant (Chin) had agreed to not distribute nor publish the apology in relation to the settlement.

Tey and Chin were seen shaking hands following today's court hearing and both left the area immediately.

Later in a separate meeting, Tey told The Edge Financial Daily that Chin's apology proved his innocence.

"I think the Court is fair and just, and I think my reputation has been restored by fairness. I am a credible business man and I proved to all today that I am innocent," Tey said.